Woman and her granddaughter killed in a tragic house fire in Hamilton, NJ

🔥A woman and her granddaughter died a day after a Hamilton house fire

🔥A neighbor rescued a girl from the house through a window

🔥The fire was ruled accidental

HAMILTON (Mercer) —A grandmother and her granddaughter died after a house fire that started around dawn on Thursday.

Hamilton police Sgt. Mark Wilson said a neighbor helped a girl who also lives in the house on Lynwood Avenue escape the flames through a window just after 6 a.m.

The girl alerted arriving first responders about two other people inside and firefighters went inside to find them.

The victims were found in two separate bedrooms. They were taken to Capital Health at Fuld, where they both died on Friday, according to Wilson. He did not identify the victims.

Tiana Thompson said in a Facebook post that her daughter would have turned 6 on Saturday.

Thompson created a GoFundMe campaign to help with funeral expenses. She wrote that she was already struggling to pay the rent.

“Words alone are insufficient to express my sympathy for the family,” Hamilton Mayor Jeff Martin said in an email. “My prayers and the towns love are with them, their loved ones and all involved in this tragedy.”

ALSO READ: Cranbury housing plan faces pushback over 'prime farmland'

Neighbor acted selflessly in rescue

The fire was ruled accidental, according to Wilson.  It appears to have started in a room on the first floor of the house.

"Our members responded swiftly and courageously, conducting immediate rescue efforts upon arrival in a determined attempt to save lives. Despite the valiant efforts of our firefighters under intense and dangerous conditions, the outcome was heartbreaking," New Jersey Firefighters Mutual Benevolent Association presidents Shane Mull (Local 284) and Mike Lombardo (Local 84) said in a statement on their Facebook page.

In a separate post the FMBA praised the actions of the neighbor.

"The neighbor acted without regard for their own safety and for that he is a hero," the union wrote.

Report a correction 👈 | 👉 Contact our newsroom